MADISON, Wis. — By the time the regular season starts, the Wisconsin men's basketball team will have played eight games. If game number seven – Wednesday's exhibition contest against Northern Iowa – is any indication, the Badgers will be in mid-season form when the season officially tips off on Nov. 10.
 
Behind a game-high 15 points from freshman Kobe King and a total of 10 3-pointers, the Badgers ran past Northern Iowa, 69-38, on Wednesday night at the Kohl Center.

"It was good for us to get under the lights again," head coach Greg Gard said. "I could tell right from the start that it was a first (game) for a number of us. They had that look on their face, the first time on this floor in front of a crowd. But I thought we did some good things. A good first step, but we'll get into the film room and get to work."
 
PLAYING FOR A BIGGER CAUSE
Wednesday's exhibition game was a late addition to the schedule after the NCAA granted a waiver for an extra contest to benefit charity. Wisconsin and Northern Iowa partnered with Team Rubicon, and CEO/Badgers alum Jake Wood, to raise money for their disaster relief efforts in Houston, Puerto Rico and California.
 
KING'S COURT
Wisconsin trailed 10-2 early and had trouble getting anything going offensively. Then Kobe King entered the game. The freshman guard triggered a 17-0 Badgers run, scoring the first five points on an and-one jumper and turn-around jumper from the baseline. King had a total of 10 points during UW's 28-5 first-half run to seize control. King finished with 15 points, going 5-for-8 from the floor, including 1-for-3 from 3-point range.

"A lot of energy from King and (Brad) Davison off of the bench," Gard said. "I'm not surprised by it, but we sure are glad to have it."
 
SPREAD THE FLOOR, SPREAD THE WEALTH
The Badgers showed the ability to stretch the floor, as a total of eight players combined to shoot 10-for-24 (.482) from 3-point range. Redshirt Freshman Aleem Ford (2-4) and junior Khalil Iverson (2-2) each hit a pair, while six others got in on the action. UNI shot just 22.2 percent from long range, going 4-for-18.
 
HAPP EXPANDING HIS GAME
Junior forward Ethan Happ is already a fan favorite after his All-American campaign last season and he didn't waste any time getting a rise from the Kohl Center faithful. Happ finished with 9 points and 7 rebounds, but debuted a new part of his game when he knocked down a 3-pointer from the top of the arc in the second half. Happ did not attempt a single 3-pointer in either of his first two years on campus, but went 1-2 from downtown Wednesday night.

"He's worked at it," Gard said of Happ's outside shooting. "But I know he understands that his game isn't attached to his ability to shoot 3s. He's pretty good around the block, and he knows that's where his most effective work will get done and most of his work will get done. So we'll see how many more of those. I don't know if I have anything up my sleeve to run for him for a 3 yet. Maybe he'll try to talk me into it."
 
DEFENSIVE LOCKDOWN
After Northern Iowa's Juwan Mccloud scored 10 points in the first eight minutes, Wisconsin's defense went into lockdown mode. The Badgers held the Panthers scoreless for the next 6:42 of the first half as UW turned a 10-2 deficit into a 19-10 lead. Overall, UNI shot just 32.6 percent from the field, including just 7-for-26 (.269) in the second half.
 
THEY DON'T COUNT, BUT THEY MATTER
With Wednesday's rout of UNI, UW improved to 6-1 during the exhibition season. The Badgers went 4-1 on their foreign tour of Australia and New Zealand and topped Missouri last weekend, 74-66, in a closed scrimmage in Rock Island, Illinois.
 
UP NEXT
The Badgers will have one final tune-up before the season begins when they host UW-Stout on Sunday, Nov. 5 for the second-annual Cancer Awareness Game at the Kohl Center. Tip-off is set for 4 p.m. (CT) on BTN Plus.